


you are the dancing king.

by starryswans (shakespearb)



Series: super trouper [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Divergence, Comfort, Dancer AU, Dancing, Friendship, M/M, Shiratorizawa VBC mentioned, formal wear, stz being supportive friends, throwbacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:28:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24245791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shakespearb/pseuds/starryswans
Summary: "dancing was his escape and hence in extension, the dance rooms [...] his paradise."tendou kicks off his dance career with choreographing for a kpop group, and with the support of his former teammates (especially a certain captain), he soars to new heights.ㅡfor tendou week day 1prompt: formal wear, dancer au
Relationships: Tendou Satori/Ushijima Wakatoshi
Series: super trouper [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1750078
Comments: 2
Kudos: 24





	you are the dancing king.

**Author's Note:**

> hello hello! its tendou week and i've decided to participate in it! i'm not sure if i would be able to finish up and post them all by this week but i'll try~ anyways enjoy the story! thank you <3
> 
> (warning: this is probably an inaccurate representation of this career route ;-; please close one eye in that aspect)

Tendou read the email he had just received again. Blinking several times, rubbing his eyes and even pacing around his room once. It was hard to believe that this was reality and that he was not dreaming. But it was true, it was all true. With shaky hands, he called the phone number highlighted on the email. Opportunities don’t come knocking twice after all, so Tendou better open up the door in front of him now.

“Hello, is this Mr. Park? I am Tendou Satori, I would be more than glad to take on the offer of choreographing for Stray Kids!” 

As soon as he hung up, Tendou immediately got up to grab his jacket and laptop before he ran straight to the dance studio nearby. Ever since he received the email, he had been filled with adrenaline and excitement. After years of posting dance covers and choreographies online and trying to appeal to companies, the chance was finally being offered to him. Words would not be enough to describe the excitement running through his veins. Dancing had been a part of him since he was young, a means of escape from the reality of the harsh world as he enveloped himself in the music with nothing but the next moves filling his head. 

Dancing was his escape and hence in extension, the dance rooms had always been his paradise. In high school, Shiratorizawa Academy had opened their dance rooms to any students and Tendou used to frequent it often in his free time. Not many students really spent time there, so he mostly had the room to himself. After graduating and entering university, Tendou worked part time to afford renting a small room at a dance studio nearby. He had visited that studio before in high school, on days where he just needed to get away from the academy. He liked the studio a lot - the comfort of familiarity made it more paradisiacal. Sure, the university had dance rooms too, but it was usually packed with dance or theatre majors and Tendou would very much appreciate his time during his dance practices alone, thank you. The studio had affordable prices, and the owner was willing to give Tendou discounts for frequenting the place often, so Tendou did not really mind the price. 

He greeted the receptionist as soon as he stepped into the building, walking straight to the elevator. He had his card that allowed him to access the studio anytime he wanted to (another benefit of being a regular!) in hand, so he usually simply skipped through the registration as long as there are rooms available. Tendou could honestly walk around the building with his eyes closed from how familiar it was to him. He was pretty sure he knew every corner of the studio like the back of his hand. While his house was a place he would return to between semesters, this studio was his true home. Tendou scanned his card on the door lock, and entered the room after the beep. Room 5, a small room located at the corner of the studio. He had chosen it with the most simple reasoning in mind: it matched his jersey number. It was a simple dance room. A wall of mirrors with some railings, a table for the speaker systems, a tripod for recordings and red soundproof walls around. Tendou gently placed his bag on the floor, taking out his laptop before connecting it to the speakers. He pulled out one of the foldable chairs that was provided as he searched his email for the song sample. He took the time to slightly stretch as the song blared throughout the room. It was an emotional song, one of Tendou’s specialties. The song started with soft, light humming, which went on in the background through the song. The introduction of the song was a soft, gentle voice, a few beats of instrumental before the song fully took off with some light rapping. Tendou could barely understand the lyrics but there was something about the song - the instrumentals with the light drumming, the emotions in the vocals and raps, the soft humming playing through the background, that made Tendou feel both comforted and emotional at the same time. There was some sort of familiarity in the song, like the song was speaking to him. 

Tendou reread the email sent, and noticed there was a PDF file with the lyrics on it, translated. He relistened to the song, following along with the lyrics as he did. Adding the lyrics into the song, it made Tendou feel so much more emotional. The song hits somewhere close to home, the lyrics resonating with him. It was a song about a father who drinks hangover soup everyday and the struggle of a son as he tries to understand his father. It painfully reminded him of his own dad. His dad had always been a workaholic, spending late nights in the office only to return home dragging piles of work on his shoulders. Tendou has seen him sitting on the dinner table at ungodly hours of the night, downing cans of beer in between furious typing on the laptop. Every morning as he prepared to go to school, he could smell the spicy scent of the hangover soup hitting his nose. From the corner of his eyes, he could see his dad lifting up his bowl of soup, finishing every last drop like it was water and he was in a desert. Tendou never understood how he could drink that soup so easily, without getting bored of it, every single day. There was once he asked his father why he drank the soup, but he only replied simply that it warmed him up. Tendou still wonders what he meant by that. 

It was 11pm when Tendou returned to the dorm. His roommate was already fast asleep, so he tried his best to keep his volume to the minimum. Tendou quickly hopped in the shower, washing off the sweat from hours-long dancing before jumping into his pyjamas and going to bed. He stared at the ceiling, his brain still churning ideas for the choreography. He had pretty much got a faint outline for the choreography, but he could not think of how to emphasise the chorus of the song. It was the most important part of the song, so he knew he had to make sure the dance could deliver the same impact as the music itself did. The gears in his head continued rolling, the faint sound of his roommate’s snores filling the air. 

-

“Semisemi~!” Tendou chirped as soon as Semi opened up his apartment door.

As soon as he woke up that morning, Tendou decided to call Semi up for help. Semi was not a dancer like he was, but his knowledge in music has helped Tendou in breaking down songs when he was stuck countless times before. While Tendou’s brain worked in a way that allowed him to picture dance moves to paint the song’s music to life, Semi could think of an image for specific parts of the song to inspire Tendou. Semi could pick out the little details in the instruments, giving the story more life that Tendou would miss otherwise. Anyways, it never hurts to get a second opinion from others. 

As the song played out through Semi’s speakers, Tendou took out his notebook to review his rough choreography sketches from the day before. Semi played the song several times, noting on his own rough papers the important details in the song. Tendou looked back at the themes and elements he had written down yesterday, cancelling out those he deemed not as fitting and writing down more ideas as it popped in his mind. 

“Well, it’s a great song. What did you write down for the themes and concepts?” Semi finally broke the silence between them. 

“Family, of course. Sympathy, sadness, all that jazz,” Tendou replied, handing Semi his notebook.

Semi took a quick glance over at Tendou’s book, silently thanking fate for making them roommates for so long. (Tendou is great in many things, but his handwriting was not one of them.) He nodded slowly, taking in the words and carefully fitting them together into the puzzle pieces in his mind. Tendou was sharper than anyone, including Tendou himself, perceived him to be and there had been many times Tendou helped Semi form a more complete perception of things. He looked at angles Semi would not even think of. With Tendou’s ideas in mind, Semi returned the book to Tendou, who was looking at him expectantly. 

“Your ideas are similar to mine actually. To emphasise the chorus, imagine this: someone desperately trying to relate to his father, who seemed so out-of-reach. On top of that, I think the persona seems to be feeling tired, that’s why he wonders if what his father drank actually helps? So, the concept of growing up and maturing, I guess?” Semi gave his insight, and Tendou nodded. 

“In short, family, maturing, desperation?” Tendou questioned for confirmation.

Semi nodded, “Also at the end, the persona finally understands his father. The persona who has not been able to understand, finally does. It’s kind of sad to think about it, because while the persona reached that point, he also finds out the truth behind the hangover soup, you know?” 

Hesitantly, Tendou added, “You mean because he probably had to go through the stress and pain his father did to reach the level of having to drink hangover soup often too?”

Semi smiled, agreeing with Tendou. Tendou cheerfully thanked him, jotting down some final notes. He offered to go out for lunch together, but Semi waved him off. From the way Tendou’s mood had changed - like the way his eyes were shining brighter and the way his feet were bouncier than it was when he first arrived, Semi knew Tendou was itching to get his ideas out. As Tendou walked off (more like skipped off), Semi told him he would stop by the studio later. Tendou shouted an ‘okay’ in response, waving his hand without looking back. Semi shook his head at his best friend’s antics, closing the door behind him. 

Two weeks later, Tendou completed his final recording of the choreography. He managed to complete the song within five days, but kept tweaking and adding moves as he saw fit until he was completely satisfied with it. It went by fast, but it was not a surprise since he was only left in charge of the main choreography. The company was going to fix the formations and other details with their own professional team on their own. It worked for Tendou, considering it was his first job after all, he was grateful to take whatever he was offered. Tendou emailed the video to the company, praying that they would be as satisfied with it as he was. 

(They were.)

And when Tendou gathered his friends from the Shiratorizawa volleyball club to watch the first public reveal of the choreography in Ushijima’s dorm, he was beyond elated. It was less than 4 minutes long, yet it felt like the longest moment Tendou ever felt in his life. The company’s dance team did a marvellous job in making the formations and adding details to complement Tendou’s original choreography. Tendou was beyond impressed at the way the full choreography not only fits his original vision of it, it was more complete than Tendou imagined. He felt a smile forming on his lips. His heart tightening, filled with so much emotions Tendou could not possibly put into words. His eyes remained glued to the television the entire time. When the applause of his friends filled the room, Tendou instinctively pulled his legs up and buried his face in his knees. Tendou was not the type to cry easily, he has never been that type. But the swelling in his heart was too much for him this time. 

“You did well, Satori.”

At the sincere parade of congratulatory wishes from his friends, Tendou bawled even harder. When he first announced that he was no longer pursuing volleyball post high school to focus on dancing, most of them were shocked. No one knew he danced, no one knew how he could find time and energy to dance in between Coach Washijo’s military level training regiment. Yet, they were more than ready to support him. These teammates turned friends’ support meant the world to him. It was what made this even more special - to be watching the premiere of his first professional job with them. He suddenly felt a hand on his back and he flinched slightly at the touch. The hand started rubbing his back, slowly and comfortingly. Then, there was another ruffling his hair, light teasings following as he lifted his hand away. (Typical of Yamagata, of course) Tendou took a moment before lifting his head back up, his friends all smiling back at him. Oohira passed him a box of tissue, which he accepted with a murmured thanks. Tendou wiped his tears away with his hands before blowing his nose into a piece of tissue. He threw the tissue into the bin beside the couch like it was a little basketball, missing the shot and earning snickers from Semi and Yamagata.

“Senpai! Can we watch you do the dance yourself?” Goshiki chirped, “I-if you’re okay with it of course, don’t worry about it!”

Tendou laughed at Shirabu’s death glare at Goshiki, leaning back on his couch before teasingly asking, “I’m too lazy though~ What am I going to get if I do, Tsutomu~?”

“I’ll buy you the next Shonen Jump! And an ice cream!” Goshiki replied, eyes shining with excitement to see his senpai dance.

Tendou lifted his eyebrows at the offer, smirking. Goshiki was still looking at him with anticipation, waiting for a reply. The rest were also looking at him, also wanting to see him dance. Tendou closed his eyes and lifted his hand up, rubbing his chin like he was stroking his non-existent beard thoughtfully. The room started being filled with his friends’ voices, one by one requesting him to do it. Tendou opened his eyes again, smiling. He got up to his feet, stretching his arms and legs. He made his way to the empty space in front of the television. (Thank God for Ushijima’s large dorm.) The eight of them had their eyes locked on him, following his every move. 

Tendou lifted his hand up, giving a curt bow and accepting their encouraging applause.

“Here’s the recording that I sent to them!” Tendou announced and played the video from his phone. 

“TENDOU SATORI!!”

(He did dance for them in the end. He has a weak spot for Goshiki anyways, rejecting his request was out of the question. Plus, these were the people who was his biggest support and motivation. How could he not?)

-

“I’m going to be late, holy shit,” Tendou grumbled as he picked up his suit jacket and hurriedly rush out the door.

He heads to his car, rummaging his pants for the keys. As the 29 year old settled in his driver’s seat, he hastily inserted the key and started the car. Checking one last time that he had all his things before zooming away. Luckily for him, the traffic was clear and he could quickly arrive at his destination within half an hour. He quickly parked his car and put on his jacket before heading to the lobby, eyes darting around in search for his fiance. 

“Satori, you’re right on time,” said a familiar, low voice from behind him.

Tendou turned around, lifting and resting his arms on his fiance’s shoulders before leaning up slightly to press a chaste kiss on his lips. Ushijima looked stunning as always in his suit. It was not the first time Ushijima had worn a suit, his profession as an athlete did require him to wear some for formal events every now and then. Not that the image ever became too plain and boring though, Tendou could stare at him wearing a suit forever. Tendou, on the other hand? Completely different story. He rarely wore one, only ever changing into them for job interviews before changing back out as soon as he was done. It did not quite suit him, he thought. Hence, Tendou had checked countless times that his suit was perfect before he left the house. Tendou would have opted for another outfit if it was possible, but since this was a formal celebratory event on the end of a successful musical run, he had no choice. He had to look his best as the lead choreographer of the musical, especially so that he could make more connections for future projects. Tendou looked down at his outfit once more, tightening his tie and smoothing out the creases that had formed as much as he could before taking out his phone to fix his hair. He hoped he looked okay.

Then, as if Ushijima could hear his thoughts he commented, “You look… stunning.”

Being so caught up in his thoughts, Tendou had not realised the way Ushijima had been staring at him. This was Ushijima’s first time seeing Tendou in formal attire. The most formal attire Ushijima had ever seen him in was in high school, and that was their school uniform. But right now? Tendou looked beyond magnificent in his suit. Tendou had chosen to wear a matching suit that was dark magenta in colour (“because it reminds me of Shiratorizawa,” Ushijima recalls Tendou saying), with a silky black shirt inside and an off-white tie. He had his hair slicked back, the gel making his hair shine slightly. The fitted pants suited him perfectly, and if Ushijima may say so, outlined his assets nicely. On top of all that, the faint blush on Tendou’s freckled cheeks after his comment earlier completed the look perfectly. If Ushijima was not so strong, he believed he would have fainted from how hard his heart was beating. 

“Shall we go in, then?” Tendou asked, putting up his hand for Ushijima to hold.

Ushijima smiled, interlocking his fingers with Tendou as they walked towards the ballroom together. 

-

The sun blinded harshly through the blinds. He turned his body away from the sun rays, and the space beside him was empty as usual. Ushijima always did his morning run without missing one, so Tendou was used to it. Tendou grumbled as he pulled down Ushijima’s pillow, using it to replace his fiance, hugging it tightly as he drifted back to sleep. 

Tendou was not quite sure how long it has been since the sun attacked him, but the gentle taps and kisses peppered on his cheeks woke him up a while later. He kept his eyes close and turned away from Ushijima, not wanting to get up just yet. He heard Ushijima sigh. Tendou remained still, controlling his breath to pretend he was still asleep. Ushijima lifted his hand off from Tendou’s arms, and Tendou internally winced at the sudden loss of touch. 

“I’m going to eat breakfast alone and read all of the Shonen Jump then,” Ushijma broke the silence between them and it took everything in Tendou to not jump out of bed. 

Ushijima remained on the side of the bed for a while and Tendou kept up with his act. Then, he felt shuffling from Ushijima. Tendou immediately opened his eyes and turned around, his arms reaching out to grab Ushijima’s shirt. With his arms grasping the material over Ushijima’s chest, he pulled Ushijima closer and let their lips meet. Ushijima hummed at his victory in waking Tendou up, letting their lips remain touching for just a short few seconds before pushing Tendou away.

Before the dancer could whine, Ushijima got up to leave and stated plainly, “You have not brushed your teeth. Go wash up first.”

Tendou went straight on his feet before wrapping his arms around Ushijma’s neck. Ushijima froze for a second at the sudden contact, but Tendou left no time for him to settle.

He jumped and wrapped his legs around Ushijima’s waist, pointing his right hand towards the direction of the door and merrily shouting, “Off to the bathroom Wakatoshi-kun~!”

-

“So, what plans do we have today Toshi?” Tendou asked as Ushijima placed two cups of iced chocolate on the table.

Ushijima shrugged, sitting down on the couch beside Tendou. Tendou sipped a bit of his beverage before snuggling up to Ushijima. There was an animal documentary playing on the television, and Tendou just continued watching it intently. From the corner of his eyes, Ushijima spotted the framed certificate that Tendou had just received the night before hung up on the wall. (Tendou had dubbed it as a “Wall of Fame”, where they could hang up their achievements to display.) An idea sparked in his head.

“Satori, considering you’ve just reached a new milestone last night, do you want to walk down memory lane with me?” Ushijma suggested.

“Didn’t know you were the nostalgic type,” Tendou teased, “But it’s embarrassing~”

“I think you should see how far you’ve come. I am very proud of you, and I want you to feel the same for yourself too.”

Tendou pulled himself away from Ushijima. Ushijima was looking at him earnestly, his hand reaching out to rub his gently. Had it been that obvious? Ushijima had a point. Tendou, while happy by how much he had been able to achieve, had never been proud enough about it. He always thought to be grateful to fate that he was able to reach where he was now. Tendou had spent many, many days and nights alone in his dance studio crying. Spent many hours perfecting little details in his moves because it just did not look right. Spent countless times reviewing and redoing his choreographies because it was never good enough. Even when he introduced himself as a dancer, or a choreographer, it never rolled off his tongue just right. He felt like he did not deserve to be called that, to be sharing the same label as the other actual dancers he looked up to. 

“Babe? I’m looking up your YouTube account, okay?” Ushijima asked.

Tendou leaned back his head on Ushijima shoulders and hummed in response. One thing he knew over the years, there are some things where if Ushijima had made his mind up about it, there was no point arguing. This was one of those things. Tendou knew Ushijima was extra protective and concerned about his low self-esteem, and it was going to be a complete loss if he even dared to fight. Ushijima finally found Tendou’s account, sorting out the uploads accordingly to go chronologically before pressing play. Tendou leaned forward to pick up his iced chocolate, sipping slowly as the video loaded up.

Ushijima was right.

(As always.)

The first video started, and Tendou had cringed at the movements. It was a dance cover, and Tendou had to actually scream at how messy and all-over-the-place it was. That was taken when he was in his first year of high school. The videos slowly moved on and Tendou noted the way his moves started looking more natural. It finally reached the first milestone Tendou achieved in his career - the choreography for Hero's Soup. To think that it has been 8 year since that happened. It felt like yesterday when he first received the email at the end of a school day, it felt like it was just yesterday that he went to analyse the song with Semi. Time seemed to pass by as quick as the videos. They reached his second milestone - Tendou's work winning Best Choreography in a highly praised award show just three years after his first job. Tendou still remembers feeling giddy when he heard his choreography was nominated, and also remembered how he almost passed out when he watched the live show and found out he won. He could not be there to attend, but the dancers that performed the work mentioned him and his career soared to higher skies. 

Finally, he reached his latest milestone. The promotional video for the musical he had worked in as lead choreographer. It was such a huge project, Tendou could still recall the disbelief he felt when he first heard the offer. He figured it would just be his usual projects, dance choreography or a dance class or something. But when he met up with the client as he was asked to, Tendou almost fainted in the middle of the bustling cafe. Truthfully, it was chaotic. He was shaking when they shook hands to confirm the deal, and he was trembling when he was signing the contract the day after. Tendou did not know how someone like him was allowed to partake in such a large-scale production. The production took months of full-day of work, countless revisions and analysis, and it just drove Tendou to his limits. There were many times within that time that he fell sick and could only monitor from the sideline. But the opening week was a full week of sold-out shows, and Tendou knew all that work was well worth it. The happiness in the performers faces during curtain call, the standing ovation the crew had received and the endless love calls coming in for the performers and even himself showed the work had all paid off.

With the overwhelming feelings filling up his heart, Tendou tightened his arms that were now around Ushijima. The athlete lifted his right arm to gently stroke Tendou’s red hair before he turned to plant a kiss on his forehead. Tendou snuggled as close as he could, burying his head on his fiance’s chest.

“Thank you for staying with me every step of the way.”

“Don’t mention it. You were always there for me too,” Ushijima replied, putting his own arms around Tendou as he continued, “I really am proud of you, I’ll never get tired of saying it.”

“I know, babe,” Tendou looked up at his fiance, “Your support means the most to me, so thank you truly.”

Ushijima let go of the dancer, maintaining eye contact as he lifted the older’s chin and closed in. Tendou placed his arms on Ushijima’s shoulders, leaning in too. What they felt they could not express enough in words were exchanged in a tender, loving kiss. The television on autoplay long forgotten as they got lost in each other’s unspoken love exchange. 

And when they finally pulled away, Ushijima held Tendou’s cheeks like he was the most precious gem in the world (he was).

“You should teach me how to dance so I wouldn’t make a fool of myself at our wedding.”

Tendou snickered at Ushijima’s statement.

Ushijima got up on his feet, offering a hand to Tendou before putting on his best gentleman voice and asking, “May I have this one dance, my dancing king?”

“You big doof,” Tendou commented as he got up to his feet and took Ushijima’s hand to move to the space behind their couch, “Like you even have to ask. I’ll dance with you until my legs shake and I can no longer stand, babe.”

Ushijima smiled, allowing Tendou to pull the strings as they slowly danced around their living room to nothing but their matching heartbeats. 

(Well, at least until Tendou’s stomach decided it was a good time to grumble a while later.  _ How unromantic _ , the redhead cursed in his head. But he thought that it was worth it since it made Ushijima laugh, which enveloped him with a warmth only his fiance could offer.)

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> find me on twitter! (@tendoutwts)


End file.
